Heart, Self & Soul: The Sufi Psychology of Growth, Balance, and Harmony
, Robert Frager, Quest Books, Theosophical Publishing House, p. 138
Many disciples like to think of their teacher as perfect ...
Robert Frager
Many disciples like to think of their teacher as perfect, which may
artificially boost their sense of self-worth. After all, the disciples
of a "perfect
master" must be very special. However, this attitude does a real
disservice
to the teachers, who have to struggle with their own inner limitations
and
imperfections just like the rest of us.
In one spiritual community I have known, when the so-called "perfect"
teacher lost his temper, his disciples would say, "Ah, the master is
perfect, so he couldn't have lost his temper. This must be a lesson
that he is teaching us. He was only pretending to be
angry, for our sakes." This absurd notion put a terrible burden on the
teacher and everybody else. Everyone began to pretend that they had no
personality faults, that they were just like the false, plaster-saint
image they had made of their teacher. When this happens, nothing real
can occur, because inner development cannot be based on pretense and
unreality.